Death in Venice
Duration: 20min 30sec
Views: 6 356
Submitted: 9 years ago
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** Best Picture, Best Mystery Movie, Best Soundtrack and Best Long Form Film at the 2010 Ollies Awards **
** Finalist at Machinima Expo 2009 **
http://machiniplex.net/expo
** Finalist at SHOOOT Awards 2009 **
http://www.shooot.com/fiesta09/
An operatic drama-romance about assassins and revenge. It bears little relation with Thomas Mann's famous novella of the same name - except for the title, and perhaps its ultimate subject matter: irresistible forces inside us that bring us to our demise.
- Written by Kate Lee
- Directed by Kate Lee & Sherwin Liu
- CAST
Jason "AnotherNewDawn" Leonti as Marc
Sonya Cross as Julia
Victoria Erica as Claire
Virginia "Dulci" Maddy as Melanie
Ken White as Sebastian
Julia J.H.P. as Scarlett and Violet
Amanda Mack as Mary Ellen
Mike Gorman as Bodyguard #1 and Italian Man
- Custom mods by Bongoman
- Original music by Sherwin Liu
- Special thanks to NeoNoir
- THIRD-PARTY RESOURCES
- Made with Moviestorm 1.1.6, http://moviestorm.co.uk
- Mods
Bongoman, MarvelousGuppiMovies, DavidWWW, Overman, Daveek
Google 3D Warehouse
- Music
"Thumbing Through Blank Pages" by Sonorant (Engulfed EP) from Jamendo.com, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
Giuseppe Verdi's "La Forza del Destino", recorded in 1941, "Rigoletto", recorded in 1950, "La Traviata", recorded in 1946, Edizione LiberMusica, a cura di:Marco Calvo, http://www.marcocalvo.it/. Stefano D'Urso, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/
"Beautiful Love" (Standards II) by Viktor Sethy from Jamendo.com, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
- Graphics
"Venetian Mask" by Eustaquio Santimano, http://www.flickr.com/photos/eustaquio/3277645121/sizes/o/, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/ (CC Attribution 2.0)
- Sounds from Freesound.org
21062007.evening.wav by Dobroide
"Garden Soundscape" by Luftrum
"Tokyo street at night" by MarkyStar
"Bells Collegiata M. Varchi" by Fonogeno
"Venice walkthrough" by thanvannispen
«Really great work here! It drew me in to the story from the very beginning, and the camerawork was quite appealing. And the ending really surprised me, I didn't see that coming! Very well done, going to check out more of your work for sure! Thumbs up from me, wish I could give it two!»
«well done »
«Great plot and pacing. Loved this one.»
«Good production all around.
That's a pretty deep plot for a 20 minute piece.»
«Good plot but I just hope there were more character development. But for a 20 min movie, this is as good as it gets. 5 stars.»
«Wow that was just amazing. Wonderful work and sound.»
«Stunning. Just stunning.»
«since everyone has already mentioned everything... I would only say that , the set dressing was exceptionally good, though it did take me a while to load a half and hour video, it movie was great and impressive
»
«despite the change of program( moviestorm instead of the movies) it's esay to recognize your movies... a style quite unique I've always loved. And this death in venice is really impressive, as usual with you I shoud say.
"irresistible forces inside us that bring us to our demise"... That's indeed what this movies talks about, and you showed it incredibely well, with a perfectly written story, perfect lines, a rythm and an atmosphere that ineluctably express the meaning of this sentence. I particularly appreciated the relation between marc and julia, both trying to love each other against those irresistible forces you talk about, until their feelings become part of their fate. It's very well shown, with a real sensitivity concerning the feelings and thoughts of those characters. You never choose facility, even if everything seems to be written from the beginning...Film noir or psychological drama, your movie manages to go beyond those categories... weel, I'd better stop here cause I'm not sure that my english is still easy to understand..so gratz! and hope to see some other work from you soon.»
«This was one of the most professionally-executed machinima films I've yet had the pleasure to witness. The angles and lighting were simply divine! I can definitely see why you moved onto Moviestorm from the Movies software. (Unfortunately my Vista can't run the MS program, otherwise I'd definitely consider switching over myself.) OH, and lest I forget, a huge welcome back to the filmmaking scene
You were missed.»
«As always a top notch production, from the Va's to the music to the direction. Truely wonderful»
«Absolutely one of the best, if not the best, scripted Machinima films I've ever watched. I love the way the plot unveiled itself incrementally not entirely in linear fashion.
A_N_D and Sonya were stellar in the lead roles and I believe it to be Sonya's best performance to date. The music selections were great and Sherwin's music compositions shined. »
«Very impressive movie, beautiful settings and great acting. Fantastic work.»
«Review part 3
This is definitely one of the top 5 films I've seen on TMU, maybe even the best.. though it's not fair to compare films of different genres. As I said, it's a film I would gladly pay to see and were it to be developed into a longer feature length I would seriously recommend you to consider approaching a film company with it, because I think there is massive potential for this to make it to the big screen. At the very least I think you should submit it to a few machinima contests like IceAxe did with Clockwork because I think this would be very difficult to beat. I'm actually slightly embarassed that my new film has gotten more comments than this because Death in Venice definitely deserves a lot more attention. This is a MUST SEE film for all machinima fans.. wait, scratch that.. all movie fans, and I congratulate Kate and Sherwin on a fantastic moviemaking achievement. 5 stars, because there is no option for 6, and PLEASE, for the love of god, keep on filming!!!
***** - 5 stars»
«Review part 2
On a VERY small negative, there were one or two sections where the music seemed to drown out the VOs, which was a shame, because although what the characters were saying wasn't vitally important, I still would have liked to have heard what they were saying. This is a very minor problem though. Also, I thought in one or two shots at the end the lighting was just a shade too dark for me, but that may just have been my monitor, as it does tend to show things darker than most screens do.
Overall, this was just a beautifully crafted piece of machinima and you two should be very proud of what you have created. The writing, direction, music, sound editing, acting... everything was just so perfectly done. This was also emotional machinima, which is oh so difficult to make, and I really felt I connected with the characters, which was achieved through a blend of excellent character development and amazing acting performances. »
«Review part 1 (because for some reason I can't post long comments as one part anymore..)
Finally, I've gotten round to leaving a review, and wow.. just, wow... This is without doubt one of the best TMU films I've seen and I fully expect this to clean up at the Ollies next year. Everything was just outstanding, so meticulously done. The overall look and direction of the film was so cinematic, so brilliantly stylish. The operatic theme and the setting of the finale in Venice added a sense of mystique and flair which raised this to a whole new level. The voice acting was outstanding by all the cast, in particular A_N_D and Sonya (who has really flourished in some of her roles recently) and the visuals were great but the thing which made this truly special was the excellent writing prevalent throughout this awesome film. The dialogue was so natural and well acted, and the beautifully wrought story unfurls just brilliantly. So well set up, and so well paced, with some great twists in there as well. The thing which really rounded it all off for me was the amazing soundtrack and overall use of music, just added so much to the film's tragic feel. This is one of those films I would gladly pay to see on the big screen, it was that good. »
«encore, encore
already a contender to take most of 2010 ollies, this is a fantastic comeback film.
now see this is what i like to see, and shows everyone else what can be done, with a fantastic writer, director, amazing actors. truly a film i remember for a long long time to come, one for my private dvd collection if you dont mind kate and sherwin.»
«Outstanding!
»
First and foremost, I really enjoyed the story....very well written, and a great twist at the end.
The acting was top-notch, and really brought the script and the characters to life.
The camera work is incredible! Great choices in framing, smooth movements, and great angles. It really gave the movie a 'cinematic' feel.
Your sets were excellent. Very detailed and perfect for each scene.
I also enjoyed the musical choices you made, and each was perfect for the mood and ambiance for each scene. Unfortunately, the music is also the only negative thing to say, since there were times when it was too loud, making it difficult to hear the dialogue....I'm thinking mainly of the first scene with the male opera singing...I couldn't make out the dialogue when that music played at all. Remember that dialogue is your most important storytelling device, so always make sure that it stands out....music and sound effects should always be lower volume background noise (unless the music or effect is what you want the focus to be on of course).
I have to say, this is one hell of a movie! Bravo!
«It´s 2 days now since I´ve watched this and I still can´t find the right words, to review it. So I´m just gonna go with biggs style: Beautiful! =)»
«Beautiful, breathtaking and stunning, those three words round this gem up. What a movie Kate and Sherwin, you two are really one of the communities best. Every film you make seems to push the boundaries and sets high standards in machinima film-making. Nice to see you make your machinima comeback in style!... Kate, your writing really is incredible, you craft scripts which are very realistic and entertaining which are up to the par of some of Hollywood's best! (not an exaggeration).
Great voice work from the cast with some wonderful performances by A_N_D and Sonya. You two went together very well and made this even more dark and emotional. The visuals where gorgeous...really spectacular. I had to watch it two more times to admire the really nice visual work; makes the film crisp and sweet! Editing was also top-notch with fantastic music and sound (well done Sherwin on that!).
Overall this was a dark operatic romance which kept us gripped to the very end. Definitely will remain as one of TMU's best films and will be in contention for a few Ollies next year I'm sure! Simply stunning!!!
★★★★★ - 5 Stars»
«Beautiful. I think that sums it up nicely.»
«Just watched, then watched it again.
Darkly beautiful story told with such attention to detail it's breathtaking.
A cinematic, dare I say operatic, story that defies my ability to express just how much I loved it.
Direction, editing, performances, sound, music and mood were pretty much flawless in my eyes.
I'm glad I downloaded from Vimeo – this one's a keeper.»
«Great script and stunning visuals also i loved the ending.»
«What can I say - your gift as a storyteller, Kate, is so great! And the visuals are simply breathtaking. Loved it, loved it, loved it.
From the title animations of the beginning to the flashbacks, the wonderful way you brought Venice to life - you truly have mastered Moviestorm! The music, the voices - all brilliant, the editing, the way you built the atmosphere, the subtle sound...
Above all shines the story - a dark story, a story about love, loss, and revenge and regret.
Beautiful, heart-wrenching, inspiring.
Thank you for this movie, Black Cats! »
«The name Chatnoir has always been a byword for quality and this film is definitely no exception. This is superbly written and produced and a pleasure to watch.
The performances were great by all concerned. Then again, you wouldn't expect anything less!
The use of opera music worked a treat, adding an extra layer of class to a movie that is already dripping with class to start off with!
I could go on and on but I won't. This is a superb movie and watching it does it more justice than any amount of words I could write about it.
A highly recommended masterpiece!»
«Absolutely beautiful. I remember doing the voiceover work 2 or 3 years ago for NeoNoir, but assumed this movie had vanished until you brought it up again a few months ago. I'm so happy to see this movie resurrected, and in such a masterful fashion. Bravo! »
«I would not pretend to leave an expert review as it is dubiously obvious that Kate and Sherwin are truly expert in the art of machinima! Genius! A beautiful masterpiece! Instant classic! Extraordinary! ---------- BRAVO times a billion!
K4»
«“Death in Venice” is an experience I shall not soon forget. It begins with great story writing and add to that the incredible talents and vision of Kate Lee and Sherwin Liu you have movie making that transcends the limits of the software. “Death in Venice” is a master-class in great story telling and magnificent movie making. Welcome back to the movies Kate and Sherwin! »
«Death in Venice showcases all of chatnoir studios strengths in an unforgettable tale.
The ability to showcase brutality in it's purest form is delivered in every scenario in this film. From the mental footprint of these characters and their downfall to their physical state. You managed to project a pure sense of longing, regret and passion. The characters bring a cunning tale together well with some top draw performances by all the cast. Special nods to Sonya and AND for their portrayal of Marc and Julia.
The cinematography of this film was just simply majestic. From the exquisite to the elegance. From the warm sunshine mood to the bitter cold night of venice. Shadows come alive, backgrounds are amplified, the mood is securely set and it was an absolute joy to watch even from a visual stance.
I love all the subtleties of camera pans, angles and the meshing of sequences. It was fluid, coherant and most of all, realistic. From the anxious twitching of Julia to the facial expressions of of Melanie and Sebastian, you managed to display emotions in a natural way.
Sound design was both subtle and powerful with special nods to your use of sterio/surround. Such moments like the car drive by to the multiplex of sounds in Marc's head to the general ambience of scenes, you had it all.
Editting was top draw with many moments that heightened tension and suspense. The maze, flash-backs, night of passon and end sequence were highlights for me.
I wish this review was better constructed but the sheer amount of things that made this movie so enjoyable for me permit me from arranging it in a better way.
Suffice to say, Death in Venice is the perfect example of what can be done in MS with time and dedication in the hands of wonderful talent.
Until the next time...
Nuke Well in Venice»
«Gorgeous. You seemed to have mastered Moviestorm in such little time. The gestures were put together so well, music was perfect, the sets were beautiful and everyone in the cast did such a great job! Everything was just... perfect! I was completely immersed. »
«A solid production. Great camera cuts. Good story. I don't know much about moviestorm but the sets were fabulous. Well done»
«A truly great film. 5/5»
«"You are now my flesh and blood......"
The Good:
What can I say, everything was good. The music for the background mood and the emotions it provokes is superb.
The camera work and visual effects were above par.
A great cast and very good voice work.
The way you incorporated flashbacks into the story to give it more depth was a nice touch.
The Bad:
None that I can see other than the usual MS twitchiness.
Overall:
A film worthy of repeat viewing. Great job and good work.»
«A happy progression to Moviestorm, you guys make it look and sound so good.
I had a bit of trouble making out the dialogue in the first scene, those tenors are louder than steamrollers, but otherwise great audio.
Acting top notch, original music by Sherwin top notch and a wondrous look and feel to it all. It's like watching a whole movie in a half hou...r minus the commercials.Pacing is excellent, Kate can wtite and direct to beat the band.
Great stuff, I'm going to watch it again.»
«outstanding movie - from the sets, to the acting and the story line -5* all around»
«Terrific.
Very well put together piece here, with some tremendous sets and mods.
Sound design was top-notch.
Excellent cast, and Bella is becoming quite a headliner.
Nice twist at the end.
Careful what you wish for...»
«This film radiated excellence!
The set design on this film blew me away - from your creative layering to the very detailed modeling.
The script, the acting...wow! Excellent. I really hope to see more from both of you! Fantastic and I highly recommend the film to all!»
«Exquisite. Can't say much more than I already did (without sounding like I'm gushing more than Roger with a firehose!).
Just.... brilliant.»